GTX970 and 1440p

[Theonelemon]

Im getting a 1440p monitor soon for my gtx970 and was wondering, after a couple years pass and its time to upgrade, Do you think i should get the latest graphics card at the time or run SLI. or will running SLI be a problem with 3.5gb of vram

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

Get the latest graphics card of that time.

[Theonelemon]

Get the latest graphics card of that time.

IF i plan to get a 1440p monitor soon, I will play at decent graphics settings but what if my preformance starts to lack in later games. I would want to SLI but that would tie me down with 3.5gb of vram so would that be a bad idea

[Johannes_Lazor]

The 970 is aimed for the 1440p market, At this point in time you wont have any bigger problems, But towards the end of the year you might have problems.

Dx12 will supposedly be able to stack Vram(In gamnes that actually use Dx12) so you might not have to worry too much about it.

[ker2015]

The 3.5GB won't limit you that much, as long as you're not going 4K anytime soon you are safe. BUT I would recommend that you get SLI for maximum performance in 1440p.

[Theonelemon]

The 970 is aimed for the 1440p market, At this point in time you wont have any bigger problems, But towards the end of the year you might have problems.

Dx12 will supposedly be able to stack Vram(In gamnes that actually use Dx12) so you might not have to worry too much about it.

would it be better to switch to a 290x even though there are some performance gains and cool nvidia features that I like with the 970

I basically need to know whether the cram on the 970 will end up screwimg me

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

IF i plan to get a 1440p monitor soon, I will play at decent graphics settings but what if my preformance starts to lack in later games. I would want to SLI but that would tie me down with 3.5gb of vram so would that be a bad idea

 

That will depend on how soon you find that your performance is lacking. If it is anything within 1.5 years or more then picking up a 970 for cheap may be a better choice. 

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

would it be better to switch to a 290x even though there are some performance gains and cool nvidia features that I like with the 970

 

No reason for you to switch. The 290x and the 970 perform just about the same. 

[Theonelemon]

That will depend on how soon you find that your performance is lacking. If it is anything within 1.5 years or more then picking up a 970 for cheap may be a better choice.

by then won't the cram limit me or will I be fine

[Swegly]

No reason for you to switch. The 290x and the 970 perform just about the same.

except the 290 has more vram. Won't that make it better for 1440p. will the 970 still be fine I have the same dilemma as lemon

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

by then won't the cram limit me or will I be fine

 

Its hard to say now... It will depend on how the games uses the Vram. If the game is coded in such a way that it loads some important assets into the slower 0.5MB portion of the 970 then you will have a problem. I'd suggest keeping this the 970 for now, selling it sometime later and use the money + the money (supposedly) for a 970 SLI to buy a newer, better and faster card without the 0.5MB problem the 970 has.  

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

except the 290 has more vram. Won't that make it better for 1440p. will the 970 still be fine I have the same dilemma as lemon

 

Maybe or maybe not. Since OP already decides on upgrading in the future, the 290x wouldn't stay in his/her rig for long. Saving the cost of a new card would be "better".  

[Johannes_Lazor]

would it be better to switch to a 290x even though there are some performance gains and cool nvidia features that I like with the 970

I basically need to know whether the cram on the 970 will end up screwimg me

The 970 and R9 290x perform about the same, But the R9 290x only has 0.5gb more full-speed memory.

The best option would be to start with the 970 and if you are reaching the Vram limit in the games you play id recommend you to buy a R9 290x with 8gb of Vram so you will have enough Vram for pretty much everything. https://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#sort=a8&page=1&c=146&r=8192

[Theonelemon]

The 970 and R9 290x perform about the same, But the R9 290x only has 0.5gb more full-speed memory.

The best option would be to start with the 970 and if you are reaching the Vram limit in the game syou play id recommend you to buy a R9 290x with 8gb of Vram so you will have enough Vram for pretty much everything. https://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#sort=a8&page=1&c=146&r=8192

does that ship to Sweden for the same price

[Johannes_Lazor]

does that ship to Sweden for the same price

No idea, I would recommend buying it from, Komplett, Datorfixarna or Inet, Those are the 3 companies i know best, I have Never had a delivery done bad from them.

Komplett: https://www.komplett.se/search?category=10412_Grafikkort&cnet-A00241-queryfacet=%5B6642450944+TO+99442450944%5D&q=R9+290x&sort=Price%3AASCENDING

Datorfixarna: http://datorfixarna.com/catalog/default.php?cPath=841_22_318_565&filter=RAM:8_GB

Inet didnt have any 8gb models.

[Elapo]

No idea, I would recommend buying it from, Komplett, Datorfixarna or Inet, Those are the 3 companies i know best, I have Never had a delivery done bad from them.

Komplett: https://www.komplett.se/search?category=10412_Grafikkort&cnet-A00241-queryfacet=%5B6642450944+TO+99442450944%5D&q=R9+290x&sort=Price%3AASCENDING

Datorfixarna: http://datorfixarna.com/catalog/default.php?cPath=841_22_318_565&filter=RAM:8_GB

Inet didnt have any 8gb models.

 

Isn't that R9 290x going to be irrelevant by the time games are actually going to need 8GB though? I don't think it'll still have the power to back up that 8 GB in 1-2 years.

[Johannes_Lazor]

Isn't that R9 290x going to be irrelevant by the time games are actually going to need 8GB though? I don't think it'll still have the power to back up that 8 GB in 1-2 years.

Thats when Crossfire becomes a cost-efficient choice.

My GTX 660 is still holding up pretty well and it is from late 2012, 2gb of Vram. Back then there wasnt many who nedded more than 2gb.

Thats also my argument against the 960, It has more raw performance than the GTX 660, But has the same amount of Vram, To actually use all the performance it would need almost 3gb.

[Elapo]

Thats when Crossfire becomes a cost-efficient choice.

My GTX 660 is still holding up pretty well and it is from late 2012, 2gb of Vram. Back then there wasnt many who nedded more than 2gb.

 

It really depends though. Crossfire/SLI are only efficient if you don't have to upgrade half of you computer to accomodate it (PSU, MOBO, Case, ...). Don't forget that it isn't always easy to find a card to CF with after a while (though this is less of a problem with AMD cards), unless you go second hand (which, let's be honest, can be fairly risky). Also, since AMD's 3xx series is coming out soon, it might be beneficial to see what's up with those cards.

 

Plus, if DX12 Allows for stacked VRAM, it's only going to make less sense. It also depends on what performance you expect, and if you're willing to live with the cons of multi GPU.

[Theonelemon]

Maybe or maybe not. Since OP already decides on upgrading in the future, the 290x wouldn't stay in his/her rig for long. Saving the cost of a new card would be "better".  

No you misunderstood I can return my gtx970 for a full refund and then buy a R9 290x Saphire tri x

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

No you misunderstood I can return my gtx970 for a full refund and then buy a R9 290x Saphire tri x

 

Well if that's the case, its up to you now.

[Theonelemon]

Well if that's the case, its up to you now.

but that brings me back to the original problem. Whether to return and get the TRI x 290x or keep the card

[Special K]

Dx12 will supposedly be able to stack Vram(In gamnes that actually use Dx12) so you might not have to worry too much about it.

 

This would be my best option. Just wait for windows 10 before investing any money. The hype around dx12 is massive at the moment.

Its going to be many years before games start using 8gb Vram as standard. Im running 2 980s in sli. and getting about 75fps in gta on ultra settings, everything maxed to hell. and its only using 3.2gb of vram. according to what the game says anyway.

[Johannes_Lazor]

but that brings me back to the original problem. Whether to return and get the TRI x 290x or keep the card

Id say keep it for now, How long time do you have left on the refund?

What PSU a do you have?

And what case do you have/what fan configuration do you use?

[Theonelemon]

Id say keep it for now, How long time do you have left on the refund?

What PSU a do you have?

And what case do you have/what fan configuration do you use?

I have 8 days left on the refund but I want to make a decision soon. I have an EVGA 750G2 (rest of specs in sig) and this is my fan config in my fractal R4: 1 fan in front pulls air in, the fan in the back pushes air out and the h100i has a setup to push air out the top of the case. Its very efficient and I have good temps on everything.

 

1 additional question: Im DEFINATELY getting 1440p and I need to know, before my card even reaches the 3.5vram limit will my card already be struggling with textures and settings like that? If so I definately dont need the 290x which is priced the same but without witcher and is louder+hotter. I have decided im not prepared to deal with the hassle that comes with crossfire/SLI so Im going to keep to a single card setup. I am lucky because my brother will buy all of my cards when I upgrade for 3/4s the price I paid for them so if i decide I want to upgrade I can at a bit of an extra cost. 

 

If its not to much to ask please elaborate completely on this because I have finaly managed to put my concerns into clear words. 

[Johannes_Lazor]

I have 8 days left on the refund but I want to make a decision soon. I have an EVGA 750G2 (rest of specs in sig) and this is my fan config in my fractal R4: 1 fan in front pulls air in, the fan in the back pushes air out and the h100i has a setup to push air out the top of the case. Its very efficient and I have good temps on everything.

 

1 additional question: Im DEFINATELY getting 1440p and I need to know, before my card even reaches the 3.5vram limit will my card already be struggling with textures and settings like that? If so I definately dont need the 290x which is priced the same but without witcher and is louder+hotter. I have decided im not prepared to deal with the hassle that comes with crossfire/SLI so Im going to keep to a single card setup. I am lucky because my brother will buy all of my cards when I upgrade for 3/4s the price I paid for them so if i decide I want to upgrade I can at a bit of an extra cost. 

 

If its not to much to ask please elaborate completely on this because I have finaly managed to put my concerns into clear words. 

Id say go for the R9 290x, It will hold on for longer since it has more full-speed Vram. In your case it wouldnt be too bad since the CPU's heat is already thrown straight out.

I would recommend getting another fan in the front so there will be less dust-buildup in the case(You should strive for a neutral or posetive pressature in teh case).

Pretty much the only heat in the system will be from the GPU so it would not be very hot or loud since your cooling situation is Very good.

I would recommend the Sapphire Tri-x model since it has the highest cooling capacity.